The NDA exam pattern explained

Most people describe NDA as "a written exam and then the SSB". That is true, but it hides the detail that decides how you should prepare. The written exam is two very different papers with a penalty for wrong answers, the SSB carries exactly as many marks as the written exam, and the final list is made by adding the two. A candidate who understands this structure spends their hours differently from one who does not.

This guide walks through each stage, how the marks add up and what the design of the exam is quietly telling you.

Who conducts it, and when

The National Defence Academy and Naval Academy Examination is conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), usually twice a year. The first exam of the year (NDA-I) is normally held around April, for a course that starts at the Academy the following January. The second (NDA-II) is normally held around September, for a course that starts the following July. Exact dates change, so take them only from the notification.

One exam gives entry to four places: the Army, Navy and Air Force wings of the NDA at Khadakwasla, and the 10+2 Cadet Entry Scheme of the Indian Naval Academy at Ezhimala. You state your preferences in the application.

The written examination

Both papers are objective only, with four options per question. Calculators and log tables are not allowed. The Mathematics paper and the General Knowledge part of GAT are set in both Hindi and English; the English part, naturally, is in English.

Paper I: Mathematics

In recent papers, Mathematics has had 120 questions of 2.5 marks each. That gives you about 75 seconds per question, and many questions need a few lines of working. The level is broadly Class 11 and 12: algebra, matrices and determinants, trigonometry, two- and three-dimensional coordinate geometry, differential and integral calculus, differential equations, vectors, statistics and probability.

Paper II: General Ability Test

GAT has two parts in one booklet, and in recent papers every question has carried 4 marks.

Part B is where many candidates are surprised. The notification itself gives an approximate weightage for its six sections:

Physics, chemistry and general science together are about half of GK. For a science student that is good news: a large part of the 400 marks is school science you already study.

Negative marking

The rule in the notification is simple and strict:

• Each wrong answer loses one-third of the marks for that question: about 0.83 in Mathematics and about 1.33 in GAT.
• If you mark more than one option, it is treated as a wrong answer, even if one of them is correct.
• A question left blank costs nothing.

Worked example (a hypothetical candidate):

• Maths: 80 attempted, 68 correct, 12 wrong. Score = 68 × 2.5 − 12 × 0.833 = 170 − 10 = 160.
• English: 40 attempted, 34 correct, 6 wrong. Score = 136 − 8 = 128.
• GK: 75 attempted, 57 correct, 18 wrong. Score = 228 − 24 = 204.
• Written total = 160 + 128 + 204 = 492 out of 900.

Notice how much the wrong answers cost: 10 + 8 + 24 = 42 marks. That is more than the value of ten correct GK answers. The full arithmetic of guessing is in our guide to negative marking in NDA.

Qualifying marks

UPSC prepares a list of candidates who reach the minimum qualifying marks in the written examination, fixed by the Commission at its discretion. The notification also says the Commission may fix qualifying marks in any or all subjects. In practice this means two hurdles: a minimum in each paper, and an overall cut-off that decides who is called to the SSB.

The SSB: 900 marks

Candidates who clear the written stage are called by a Services Selection Board for the Intelligence and Personality Test. It runs in two stages:

1. Stage I — the Officer Intelligence Rating (OIR) tests and the Picture Perception and Description Test (PP&DT). Only candidates who clear Stage I stay on.
2. Stage II — psychology tests, Group Testing Officer tasks, the personal interview and the conference, spread over about four days.

Three assessors — the Interviewing Officer, the Group Testing Officer and the Psychologist — each judge the candidate as a whole, and the conference adds a final assessment. There is no fixed weightage for individual tests. You must also clear a minimum set by the SSB. Candidates who opt for the Air Force take the Computerised Pilot Selection System (CPSS), and a candidate gets only one attempt at it in their life. A medical examination follows for those recommended. The SSB itself is explained in our SSB overview.

How the final merit list is made

Qualified candidates are placed in one combined list on the basis of written marks plus SSB marks: 900 + 900 = 1,800. Seats in each service are then filled on merit-cum-preference, subject to eligibility and medical fitness. Written results and final merit lists for men and women are prepared separately, against the vacancies notified for each.

If two candidates have the same total, the notification's tie-breaking rules apply in order: the higher written total ranks first; if that is also equal, the higher GAT score; then the candidate older in age.

What the pattern tells you about preparation

If you want to see how these sections break down topic by topic, read the NDA syllabus, analysed.

Quick self-check

1. How many marks does the written exam carry, and how are they split between the two papers?
2. What happens if you mark two options for one question?
3. Which GK section carries the highest weightage, and roughly how many marks is it worth?
4. What is the final merit list out of?
5. If two candidates tie on the final total, what decides the order first?

Answers: (1) 900 — Maths 300, GAT 600 (English 200, GK 400). (2) It counts as a wrong answer and attracts the penalty. (3) Physics, about 25%, roughly 100 marks. (4) 1,800 — written 900 plus SSB 900. (5) The higher written total.

If you can answer all five without scrolling up, you understand the exam better than most candidates starting out. Your next step is to download the current notification and read the scheme and syllabus in full.